Cocktail
by iAndromeda
Summary: Muskaan, Daya's most adored friend, is back. Unaware about Daya and Shreya's complicated enough relationship, she hints that even she might still be in love with him. So there's a lot of confusion, a little hurt feelings and of course a lot of drama! A cocktail of love and friendships! (cudn't think of any other name!)
1. the new old girl

"Inspector Muskaan, reporting sir!"

These four words had a very dramatic effect over almost all the people present in the bureau at that time.

Senior inspector Abhijeet whirled his head around with the speed of lightning, Dr. Salunkhe and Dr. Tarika, both dropped the watch glasses they were holding, Inpector Vivek spat out the mouthful of water he'd drank, while Inspector Fredrick knocked off the computer as he stood up quicker than ever.

And the rest of the people in the bureau, viz. Inspector Shreya, Inspector Purvi, Inspector Nikhil and Inspector Sachin watched on with surprise the reaction of their colleagues.

A tall, slender girl, with long, straight hair stood at the door with her hands behind her back. She had a beautiful face with determined eyes. There was a smile on her face and confidence in her posture.

"Muskaan!" Abhijeet called out and went over to hug her.

"Hey" she too called out and hugged him.

"Hello!" Tarika squealed and both the girls swayed as they embraced each other.

By that time Vivek went over to them and after Tarika was done, he too hugged the girl.

"Musi!" he said as she replied, "Vivek!"

The other officers looked at each other with raised eyebrows but remained silent.

The only person who did not look surprised besides the girl was ACP Pradyuman. With a smile on his face, he said, "Welcome back, Muskaan"

"Thank you, sir"

"It's good to have you back"

"Sir, it's equally good to be back"

ACP sir patted her shoulder and said, "Well, sabse mill lo and then, back to work"

"Yes sir"

After ACP sir had gone back in his cabin, Muskaan met every one formally and then asked Abhijeet, "Daya kaha pe hain?"

Shreya's eyes widened at this question and she looked at Muskaan and Abhijeet, who said, "Muskaan, he's a senior Inspector now and since you are on duty, I suggest you call him 'sir'"

Inspector Muskaan was on first name basis with Daya sir? Shreya could not refer to him as only 'daya' even in her thoughts. It was always Daya 'sir' for her. Abhijeet had introduced her and told everyone that Muskaan worked at CID Mumbai before transferring to another city and now she was back. So it was evident that she knew Daya since before Shreya.

"Yes Abhijeet. Sir" she added, "Par Daya 'sir' hain kaha pe?"

As if on cue, Daya entered the bureau.

"Inspector Daya, repor-" Daya stopped all of a sudden as he saw a girl with a big grin on her face exclaim, "DAYA!" as she ran towards him and hugged him tightly.

He too hugged her back, lifting her off her feet and with a huge grin and said, "Muskaan!"

Now everyone in the bureau stopped their work to look at the phenomenal sight. Senior Inspector Daya hugging a girl like that in front of everyone. And it was not Shreya. Well, that was surprising.

This was too much for Shreya to digest. She could hardly believe anything happening in front of her. It was Daya sir for goodness's sake! How could any girl just show up and hug Daya sir in front of her? Here she was, still calling him 'sir' even in her thoughts and Inspector Muskaan just hugs him like that? Shreya was quite certain that as soon as it was break time, Daya sir was going to be addressed simply as 'Daya' by Muskaan.

What was even more surprising or rather what hurt Shreya was the Daya's response to Muskaan.

She was waiting since probably forever for Daya to ask her out on a date but if Daya was going to take her out, he was definitely not showing any signs of doing it soon.

She was in love with him since the first few months she had joined the team. And she had felt that he loved her too. Agreed, he had never confessed, nor had he ever asked her out on a date, but the entire bureau knew about their love.

And so that is why after Daya and Muskaan separated, everyone looked at Shreya; to see how she was taking all this in.

Daya was a bit embarrassed after the hug but not Muskaan. Daya stole a glance at Shreya and then returned his attention to Muskaan who said, "Missed you man!"

"Missed you too Muskaan" Daya said with a smile.

"Agar aapka milna ho gaya ho toh kaam pe wapas jaaye? ACP sir is still in his cabin" Abhijeet reminded them.

Everyone went back to work but Shreya could not concentrate. Every two minutes she looked at Daya and Muskaan to see the two of them looking at each other and smiling.

She frustrated. So when finally it was break time, she could take it no longer and she went to Vivek's desk and said, "Hey, want to grab a coffee?"

"Not now" Vivek said not looking up from the computer screen, "muhe ye file khtam karne do"

"Vivek? Can you please come with me right now?" Shreya asked in a low voice through gritted teeth.

Vivek looked at her and said, "Okay"

As they both sat in the canteen sipping their coffee, Shreya said, "So, 'Musi' huh?"

Vivek smiled at her and said, "She's just a friend and besides, mujhe pata hai tumhe 'Musi' se jyaada sirf 'Daya' ki padi hai" Vivek smiled at her.

"Kya matlab?"

"Oh come on Shreya, we've been friends as long as you've been in love with Daya sir"

Shreya sat back in her chair and exhaled. Vivek was one of her best friends and could see right through her. So all she said was, "Inspector Muskaan seems pretty close to you all of you guys jo mein aur Purvi join karne ke pehle se CID Mumbai mein hai"

"Yes she does. She knows all of us and woh hum sabki bohot achchi dost hai"

"Hmm" was all Shreya said, waiting for more.

"Listen, it might hurt you but, the thing is, Daya sir and Muskaan are old friends" Vivek said.

"That part was demonstrated today morning in bureau quite evidently" Shreya said trying to control the sarcasm coming up in her speech.

"No. You don't understand what I mean" he sighed, "it not just that, Daya sir and Muskaan were… were in love with each other"


	2. Blast from the Past

Shreya swallowed a lump in her throat and stared at her coffee.

Vivek said, "See, I told you, tumhe bura lagega"

"Mujhe kyu bura lagega?" Shreya snapped at him, "Aur yeh sab kuch tumhe kaise pata hai?"

"Freddy sir ne bataya. Mein team join karne se pehle hi Muskaan, Daya sir aur Abhijeet sir ne team join ki thi. They were the best of friends. And dekh ke hi pata chal jata tha ki Muskaan aur Daya sir ke beech mein kuch toh khaas tha. Tums ach mein jan na chahati ho?" Vivek asked hesitantly.

"Mein sirf yeh jan na chahti hoon ki Daya sir aur Muskaan ke beech kya rishta tha"

"Muskaan was there for Daya sir during his hardest time. During a case, an innocent guy had died by a bullet and the blame was laid on Daya sir. The family of the guy had filed a case against Daya sir because it looked like it was his bullet that had killed him. Later it was revealed to be the plan of one of the family members; that's beside the point. But the thing is uss waqt, Abhijeet sir aur ACP sir bhi Daya sir ke khilaaf the. Kyunki saare saboot Daya sir ke khilaaf the.

Tabhi sirf aur sirf Muskaan ne unka saath diya. She was there for him. Woh case kuch hafton ke liye chala before Daya sir was proven innocent. Unn hafton mein, Daya sir was under house arrest and Muskaan was there with him. She did not believe a single clue against Daya sir. She did not even let anyone try to convince her against him. She stood behind him fiercely. So of course, by the time Daya sir was proven innocent, they were quite in love with each other" Vivek finished.

That was definitely much bigger than Shreya had expected it to be. And why hadn't anyone told her that someone had once laid blame on Daya sir? And why did it hurt so damn much to hear that Daya sir had been in love with someone else before she came along?

Shreya and Vivek were both silent for some time before Shreya said, "So why did Inspector Muskaan get a transfer?"

Vivek sighed, "That is another story. After that whole incident, Daya sir and Muskaan were in love with each other big time. I swear, the Daya sir you see today and uss waqt ke Daya sir mein zammen asmaan ka fark hai. He has…" Vivek chose his words carefully, "… matured very much now. Back in those days, both of them were quite young. And they were madly in love with each other. Almost roz dinner pe jaana, bureau mein openly flirt karna, of course not in front of ACP sir, and in limits but flirting nevertheless, aur who dono aur Abhijeet sir kaafi close friends the so not only as lovers, they were like soulmates-best friends who loved each other. So that made their relationship quite smooth"

A smooth relationship with Daya sir. To be on first name basis with Daya sir. For Daya sir to be madly in love with her. For Daya sir to flirt with her, take her out for dinner almost every night. There was no other girl in the world luckier than Muskaan, thought Shreya. All the things she craved for, Muskaan had them.

"That went on for quite some months. They were open about their relationship right from the beginning. Then, Daya sir wanted to take their relationship on the next level; he was going to give her The Ring apparently, and he started hinting that he might pop the question to her. Muskaan did not want to settle down so fast. She felt her duty would take a back seat unconsciously if she married and so she applied for a transfer to her home city and went back to her parent house saying she was missing them.

Everyone knew the real reason and since Daya sir and Muskaan were-are-such great friends, things did not change much. Or so we thought. Later it was after Muskaan left that we saw how hurt Daya sir was. It broke his heart. She was the one who stood by him, you know. So naturally, he was quite attached to her.

But they never officially broke their relationship. They were in touch I think. And I don't think Muskaan ever had any intention of coming back. That is why everyone was so surprised by her arrival" Vivek said finishing his coffee at last.

How and what are you supposed to feel after you hear that the person whom you are in love with was already madly in love with someone else before you came along because all the while you just could not imagine him being in love with anyone else; not only in love but with whom he had a fantastic relationship and that person comes back again and apart from your love for that person, you are just not sure about anyone's feelings towards anyone anymore.

Shreya needed another cup of coffee.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N**

**This chapter is for Amaila noor-Happy Birthday!**

"Shreya, tum theek ho?" Vivek asked.

"Haan" Shreya replied not looking at him.

"Toh, chale wapas?"

"Hmm" saying so, Shreya got up.

As Shreya and Vivek were going back, they saw Muskaan, Daya and Abhijeet making their way towards the canteen.

Vivek nodded at them as they passed and Daya smiled at Shreya. But Shreya turned her head around and said to Vivek, "Toh woh file complete ho gayi?"

Vivek looked strangely at her and Shreya continued, "Wahi jo mein ne tumhe abhi thodi der pehele check karne…" seeing that the trio had entered the canteen Shreya left her sentence unfinished.

Vivek laughed and said, "Shreya, Daya sir ko jalaane ki koshish mat kar"

"Mein kisi ko bhi nahi jala rahi thi"

"Shreya, meri baat sunno" Vivek smiled at her, "Daya sir aur Muskaan sirf dost hain. Daya sir tujhse pyaar karte hain yeh sabko pata hai. So, chill. Aaj nahi toh kal woh tujhe yeh bol denge. Trust me"

"Huh" Shreya crossed her arms and in her mind said, 'aaj hi bata diya toh jyaada achcha hoga'

"Ab chal" Vivek said putting his hand around her shoulder, "waise Daya sir ke bare mein itna sochti hai, kabhi mere bare mein bhi socha karo. Agle hafte mera birthday hai. Toh mere liye gift kya laana hain woh soch. Best friend hon tumhara. Thoda toh time diya karo mujhe"

"Meine tumhare liye gift alredy laya hai. So please. Aur birthday bhoolna ya phir birthday gifts bhool ne ka contract sifr tumhare paas hai. Last time mera birthday gift tum bhool gaye the"

"Mein bhool nahi gaya tha sirf proper time pe dene ke liye ruka tha!"

"Gift store mein gaya aur woh ladki jo counter pe thi usse baat karne ke chakkar mein gift lana hi bhool gaya. Aur uparse usne baad mein tujhe mere saath dekha aur tumhe do gaaliyan deke chali gayi" Shreya laughed.

"Tum ab has rahi ho na? Toh woh do gaaliyan khayi toh koi baat nahi!"

Shreya smiled. She was glad to have Vivek for a best friend in her life.

Meanwhile, at the canteen, the trio sat down to have some food.

"Bilkul puraane dino ki tarah lagta hai" Muskaan smiled.

"Haan" Abhijeet said.

"Kya maze karte the hum" Daya added

Daya remembered the old days. Sure, his heart broke when Muskaan had left, but that did not mean their friendship broke too. She was still his best friend. It felt so nice, to sit in the canteen with your best friends for life, having coffee, remembering the old days.

'kaash Shreyas bhi yah ape hoti'

Even he was surprised at the sudden thought that had crossed his mind. As he bemused at it, he realized, he meant it. She was the one who would make that moment perfect.

And speaking of Shreya, usne dusri taraf kyun dekha jab meine uski taraf dekha?

Daya came out of his thought when he heard Muskaan ask Abhijeet, "Dr. Tarika ke saath kya haal-chaal?"

"Matlab?"

"Matlab, kya haal-chaal? Date pe gaye ho, openly confess kar chuke ho, abhi bhi confess karne ki himmat nahi hai, kya?"

"Tumhe kya lagta? Abhijeet asked Muskaan.

"Mere bhai Abhijeet, jabtak mein tujhe dhakka mar ke Tarika ke paas nahi bhejungi, tabtak tu door se hi use dekhta rahega"

"Achcha?"

"Haan. Muskaan, aaj dhakka maare?" Daya said.

"Shubh kaam mein deri kaisi?"

"Tum dono aisa kuch bhi nahi karoge" Abhijeet said with a firm voice.

"Dekhenge" Muskaam smiled mischievously at him.

As they continued with their work, Muskaan suddenly jerked her head up and smiled as she looked over at Abhijeet and Tarika engrossed in their respective work. She nudged Daya on her way to Tarika.

"Tarika, sunno na, mere ghar ke paas mein hi ek naya fast food joint open hua hai. Aaj jaye khaane ke liye?"

"Okay. Sounds fun"

"Okay then. Toh aaj sham pakka?"

"Haan. Waise naam kyaa hai uss eatery ka?"

"Taco Bell"

"What?! Taco bell matlab Spanish food. Tujhe pata hain na mujhe Spanish dishes bilkul pasand nahi hai"

"Kya? Sach mein? Tumne kabhi Spanish try bhi kiya hai?"

"Haan. Sirf ek baar. Aur woh mujhe bilkul pasand nahi aaya" Tarika said wrinkling her nose.

"Arrey Dr. Tarika aapko sach mein Spanish pasand nahi hai? Mujhe aur Abhijeet ko toh Spanish food bohot pasand hai"

"Kya? Magar-" Abhijeet started to say, but was cut off by Muskaan who said, "Haan haan. Mujhe lagta hai, Tarika, ki tumhe ek aur baar try karna chahiye Spanish food, kyun hai na Daya?"

"Of couse. In fact, aaj sham ko hi jaaye? Dr. Tarika aap mere aur Abhijeet ke saath chaliye"

Now Tarika looked at Abhijeet who said, "Jee haan bilkul, aap jaror aana. You'll love it. Spanish food, I mean"

"Okay, toh aaj sham saade saat baje?" Daya asked her.

"Theek hai" Tarika said.

"Arrey, lekin Daya, tum toh aaj shaam mere saath exhibition mein aane waale ho na? jiske mujhe do paases mile the?"

"Arrey haan! Aur woh passes pe photos bhi hai toh woh passes kisi aur ko de bhi nahi sakte" Daya sighed, "Toh ek kaam karo, abhi program ban ho gaya hai, toh Abhijeet, tum aur Dr. Tarika jao Taco Bell. Mein aur Muskaan exhibition mein jaake aat hai"

"Theek hai" Abhijeet said and looked at Tarika

"Okay I'll see you at Taco Bell" Tarika smiled at him.

As they went back to their work, Abhijeet thanked them both and Daya and Muskaan high-fived each other.

"Man, that was spontaneous"Muskaan said.

"Yes. Khushi ki baat yeh hai ki date fix ho gayi"

"Waise, art gallery mein sach mein exhibition laga hai, free-entry. Wanna come?"

"Umm…theek hai. Shreya ko bhi poochte hai. Shayad usse bhi aane mein intrest ho?" Daya said.

"Okay" Muskaan said.

They went over to Shreya as Muskaan smiled and said, "Hey Shreya, art gallery mein exhibition laga hai. Daya aur mein jaa rahe hai, so you want to join us? Daya ne mujhe bataya ki tumhe bhi intrest hai art mein?"


	4. The trio on date-with a surprise!

**A/N**

**I know, I am horribly late with the update but please people try to understand that I am terribly busy with studies and hence cannot update my stories as frequently. My terms are coming up and so I have no idea when the next update will take place.**

**I am not going to update anything sloppily written just for the sake of updating and so updates will take time. Sorry about that. **

**The Guest who requested me constantly to update the story, this one is for you. Sorry again for the late update-here's the next chapter.**

"Sure" Shreya smiled at Muskaan.

"Okay. Daya hume pick karega. I mean Daya sir" Mukan added looking at Daya.

"Yeh kab decide hua?" Daya asked.

"Kab decide hua matlab? Be a gentleman. Pick us up. Kyu Shreya?"

"Uhh…haan?" Shreya said.

Daya just shook his head as Muskaan smiled and said, "Theek hai phir. Daya-sir-aap hume pick up kar rahe hai" she went over to Shreya and whispered, "And that's how you get Senior Inspector Daya to drive you to the exhibition"

"Haan bilkul. Senior Inspector ke saath mein part time driver ka bhi job karta hoon. Twenty four hours, free of cost services" Daya said, clearly catching Muskaan's comment.

"Oh come on Daya, you know what I mean. Doston ko liye itna bhi nahi kar sakte?" Muskaan made an innocent face.

"Be ready at seven" saying so Daya went away leaving Shreya and Muskaan to stand together. Shreya felt really awkward to stand there with Muskaan.

"Toh, tumhe bhi paintings vagera mein intrest hai?" Muskaan asked Shreya.

"Thoda bohot" Shreya replied.

"Cool. Modern art ya phir actual paintings?" Muskaan asked

"Actual paintings" Shreya said, "Frankly mujhe modern art samajh nahi aata"

"Exactly! It's rubbish! Bas kuch bhi paint karke they sell it under the name of modrn art! Paitings matlab kuch toh dhang ka paint karna chahiye na?"

"Wahi toh. Aapko bhi arts mein intrest hai? " Shreya said.

"Don't say 'aap' and all. Just call me Muskaan. Even Musi will do if you're comfortable with that. Vaise sirf Vivek mujhe Musi bulata hai. But that's okay"

"Okay. Muskaan" Shreya smiled.

"Anyway, see you at seven. Ab thoda kaam bhi karte hai varna _Senior Inpector_ Daya chillayenge!" Mukaan laughed as she went away.

Later Shreya got ready to go to the exhibition and waited for seven o'clock.

Sharp at seven, she heard the sound of tyres on the driveway. Her heart skipped a beat as she saw Daya. She tried to calm down herself and patiently walked to the car and slid in the passenger seat and tried to be calm as opposed to how jumpy she was feeling. Daya had yet to pick up Muskaan. Shreya found herself wishing that Muskaan would be there with them too; at least the awkward silence that followed would be filled with her lively chatter.

"Uhh, Shreya...tum achchi dikh rahi ho" Daya mustered without taking his eyes off the road.

Shreya could feel her cheeks go hot as she said a shy 'thank you'

They remained silent after that till Daya reached Muskaan's house.

Daya honked the horn and sighed.

"Ab thodi der ruko" Daya said looking at the steering wheel, "Yeh ladki kabhi bhi time par tayar nahi rehti hai. Har baar late. Punctuality naam ki koi cheeze nahi hai"

Shreya just nodded, unsure what to say to that, as Muskaan hurried out of her house saying, "_Sorry_!_ Really sorry_! My bad!" as she got in the car.

"Muskaan, kabhi toh time pe aaya karo!" Daya said as he started the engine.

"Sorry bola na!" Muskaan said.

"Huh" Daya said looking irritated.

After some time Muskaan said, "Waise Shreya iss jhalle ne apni punctuality ki line maari ya nahi? '_puntuality naam ki koi cheeze nahi hai_'?" Muskaan imitated Daya.

Before Shreya could reply, Daya shot back, "Boss badhiya manners hai tum mein Muskaan! Apne seniors ko ' jhalla' kehe kar address karti ho!"

"Mr. jhalla, tum mere senior duty pe ho. Abhi hum log off-duty hai. Aur abhi hum dost hai. Isiliye I have got the full right to call you whatever I want right now" Muskaan smirked.

Shreya shifted in her seat and was silently going over about Muskaan's comment in her head.

They reached the gallery and made their way to the entrance. They saw the paintings; Muskaan and Shreya talking all the way. Daya trailed behind them, remaining silent for most of the time.

Shreya found it really easy to talk with Muskaan. Muskaan was the sort of person who easily put you at ease and since art was a topic of interest to both the girls, they chatted forgetting that even Daya was with them.

When Muskaan had entered, Shreya had felt a jealous twinge because of the equation Muskaan shared with Daya, but now, she felt all warmed up to Muskaan. It was like old friends catching up with each other after a long time.

Shreya had basically agreed to go to the exhibition because of Daya but now, she was rather enjoying the company of Muskaan. Daya openly confessed that he had lost all his interest and was bored and hungry. So the trio went to have dinner.

As they waited for dinner to arrive, Muskaan was telling Shreya of the old days.

"Kya maza karte the hum log. Mein, Abhi, Daya, Freddy sir, Vivek! Hai na Daya?"

"Haan" Daya said. He glanced at Shreya who had a smile pasted on her face even though she was a bit uncomfortable at the mention of the past.

_Daya wondered whether Shreya knew his past relationship with Muskaan. He hoped not. Things were awkward enough with him and Shreya and he did not wish his past relation with Muskaan to come into the picture._

_He had never felt this way before; the way he felt about Shreya. Even when he was in a relationship with Muskaan, it was different. Muskaan and he had been-still were- best friends. And so, the relationship was…different. He wasn't nervous around Muskaan. Maybe because they were quite open about their feelings or because they had been friends since before falling in love or because of the fact that they had fallen in love knowing all along that they were falling in love._

_Yes, he agreed that he was in love with Muskaan. She was his first love. And during the time they had been together, during that whole house-arrest incident a strong bond had been formed between them, and both of them knew that after that mess was cleared up, a relationship would build up._

_Both were young and energetic and determined and thirsty for adventures. And so sparks had flown instantly. Their relationship was more or less an adventure for them; at the beginning. Later, it developed into something more serious for Daya, not for Muskaan._

_That relationship-and the heartbreak that came along with it-matured Daya. He got over it later; 'time heals all wounds' but Muskaan still had a special place in his heart. She was always going to be one of his best friends; because no matter what romantic mess they had, she was there for him when he needed her and Daya respected that and was very thankful for that. And even Muskaan was clear about that. No matter what their romantic relationship status was, their friendship status would always be very special best friends._

_But with Shreya, it was something much more complicated. Muskaan and Shreya were poles apart. As outgoing Muskaan was about their relationship, Shreya was just as quite._

_And he knew, it was the serious kinds of feelings he had for Shreya. He did not want to mess up this time. _

"Hey jhalla, kaha kho gaye?" Muskaan shook him out of his thoughts.

"Kidhar bhi nahi. Tum dono ka ho gay? Hum log nikle?" Daya asked.

"Haan chalo." Muskaan said and drew out her purse to pay the bills.

"Muskaan, yeh kyaa kar rahi ho?" Daya asked her.

"Daya shut up. Meine tum dono ko invite kiya hai so it's my treat"

"Are you mad? Tumhe lagta hai mein tum dono mein se kisi ko bhi mere hote hue paise bharne doonga?" Daya said as he saw Shreya too taking out money from her purse.

Finally, the bills paid (by Daya), the trio drove back. They reached Muskaan's house first and Muskaan got down.

She went over to the driver's side window and said, "Shreya thanks for coming! It was really nice. Warna kuch log toh bore ho jaate hai art exhiobition mein" she said looking at Daya.

"And a good night to you too Muskaan" Daya said.

Muskaan laughed and said, "Good night"

Whatever happened in the next moment was absolutely not expected by anyone. Muskaan bent down and kissed Daya on the cheek.

"Good night" she said again and smiled at Daya and later said, "Shreya good night" and smiled at Shreya too.

Shreya managed a barely audible 'good night' as her throat completely dried up seeing whatever had happened in front of her.

Daya turned red and did not say anything and Muskaan too turned around and walked to her house.

Daya and Shreya, too stunned to speak, drove in silence again as Daya stopped in front of Shreya's house.

"Shreya…" Daya stared to speak but was cut cut off by Shreya who said, "Good night sir" without looking at him and without looking back went to her house leaving Daya to bang his head on the head-rest.

**A/N: a few things to be cleared – **

**For those who feel like 'what on the earth did just happen?!' please read the summary of the story again.**

**DaReya fans- Mukaan is OBLIVIOUS to Daya and Shreya's relationship. (again, read the summary) She DOES NOT know that Daya and Shreya have feelings for each other.**

**Hope you liked the chapter!**


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